Shifter cable assembly of a vehicle

ABSTRACT

A shifter cable assembly of a vehicle includes a vehicle panel selected from a floor panel and a dash wall panel. A transmission is disposed on a first side of the vehicle panel. A shift member is disposed on a second side of the vehicle panel opposite the first side. A mounting bracket is rigidly attached to the vehicle panel. A sealing grommet has a sealing portion sandwiched between the mounting bracket and the vehicle panel. A shifter cable is received by a conduit portion of the sealing grommet. A first end of the shifter cable is connected to the transmission, and a second end of the shifter cable is connected to the shift member. A damper member is connected to the mounting bracket. The damper member is configured to reduce application to the mounting bracket of vibration generated by the transmission.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention generally relates to a shifter cable assembly of avehicle. More specifically, the present invention relates to a dampermember that reduces the application of vibration generated by atransmission assembly of a vehicle to a mounting bracket movablyreceiving a shifter cable.

2. Background Information

Vehicle transmissions transmit power from a vehicle's engine to thewheels. Some transmissions, such as continuously variable transmissions,include a pair of variable diameter pulleys connected by a chain or beltto automatically select an efficient engine speed for the presentdriving situation. However, such transmissions can transmit vibration tothe vehicle structure, thereby generating an undesirable or distractingnoise during operation to a vehicle passenger.

SUMMARY

In view of the state of the known technology, one aspect of the resentinvention includes a shifter cable assembly of a vehicle including avehicle panel selected from a floor panel and a dash wall panel. Atransmission is disposed on a first side of the vehicle panel. A shiftmember is disposed on a second side of the vehicle panel opposite thefirst side. A mounting bracket is rigidly attached to the vehicle panel.A sealing grommet has a sealing portion sandwiched between the mountingbracket and the vehicle panel. A shifter cable is received by a conduitportion of the sealing grommet. A first end of the shifter cable isconnected to the transmission, and a second end of the shifter cable isconnected to the shift member. A damper member is connected to themounting bracket. The damper member is configured to reduce applicationto the mounting bracket of vibration generated by the transmission.

Another aspect of the present invention includes a shifter cableassembly of a vehicle including a vehicle panel selected from a floorpanel and a dash wall panel. A transmission is disposed on a first sideof the vehicle panel. A shift member is disposed on a second side of thevehicle panel opposite the first side. A mounting bracket is rigidlyattached to the vehicle panel, and defines a first conduit opening. Asealing grommet has a sealing portion sandwiched between the mountingbracket and the vehicle panel, and a conduit portion including aprojection extending through the first conduit opening. A shifter cableis received by the conduit portion of the sealing grommet. A first endof the shifter cable is connected to the transmission, and a second endof the shifter cable is connected to the shift member. A damper memberis connected to the mounting bracket. The damper member has a U-shapeincluding a first leg, a second leg, and a bridge portion between thefirst and second legs. The first leg, second leg, and bridge portiondefine a second conduit opening. A periphery of the second conduitopening is aligned with a periphery of the first conduit opening of themounting bracket on three sides. The projection of the conduit portionof the sealing grommet extends through the second conduit opening. Thedamper member is configured to reduce application to the mountingbracket of vibration generated by the transmission.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring now to the attached drawings which form a part of thisoriginal disclosure:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vehicle passenger compartmentincluding a shifter cable assembly in accordance with an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of a shifter cable connected betweena transmission assembly and a shift member;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the mounting bracket of the shiftercable assembly of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a top perspective view of the mounting bracket of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a rear perspective view of the mounting bracket of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a side elevation view of the mounting bracket of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the damper member of the shifter cableassembly of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a top perspective view of the damper member of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a rear perspective view of the damper member of FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a side elevation view of the damper member of FIG. 7;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the damper member connected to themounting bracket of the shifter cable assembly;

FIG. 12 is a top perspective view of the damper member connected to themounting bracket of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a rear perspective view of the damper member connected to themounting bracket of FIG. 11;

FIG. 14 is a side elevation view of the damper member connected to themounting bracket of FIG. 11;

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the shifter cable assembly mounted to avehicle panel;

FIG. 16 is a graph of the frequency of the noise transmission of thebracket; and

FIG. 17 is a graph of the chain rotation speed of the transmission tothe sound pressure level.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Selected exemplary embodiments will now be explained with reference tothe drawings. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art from thisdisclosure that the following descriptions of the exemplary embodimentsare provided for illustration only and not for the purpose of limitingthe invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Referring initially to FIGS. 1 and 2, a vehicle 10 including a shiftercable assembly 12 is illustrated in accordance with an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention.

The vehicle 10 includes a center console 14 with side trim panels 16.The vehicle 10 further includes a floor panel 18, an upright dash wallpanel 20, front seats 13 and the center console 14. The floor 18 and thedash wall 20 at least partially define a passenger compartment 11 of thevehicle 10. The dash wall 18 extends upward from a front edge of thefloor 18 and separates an engine compartment (not shown) of the vehicle10 from the passenger compartment 11. The seats 13 are preferablysecured to the floor 18 by fasteners (not shown) within the passengercompartment 11 in a conventional manner. It should be understood fromthe drawings and the description herein that the vehicle 10 alsoincludes a variety of conventional components that are peripheral to theinvention. Therefore, description of these conventional components isomitted for the sake of brevity.

A shift selector assembly 22 is disposed in the center console 14, asshown in FIGS. 1 and 2. A shift member 24 is connected to the shiftselector assembly 22 to select a transmission operating mode of atransmission assembly 26 disposed in the engine compartment. The shiftmember 24 extends out of and above the center console 14 to facilitateoperation by a driver of the vehicle 10.

A shifter cable 28 connects the shift member 24 to the transmissionassembly 26, as shown in FIG. 2. Movement of the shift member 24operates a transmission lever 30 of the transmission assembly 26,thereby putting the transmission assembly in the selected drive mode.The transmission assembly 26 can be any suitable transmission, such as acontinuously variable transmission (CVT), an automatic transmission or amanual transmission.

The shifter cable 28 passes through a vehicle panel 32 disposed betweenthe shift member 24 and the transmission assembly 26, as shown in FIG.2. The vehicle panel 32 can be either the floor panel 18 or the dashwall panel 20. The shift member 24 is disposed on an opposite side ofthe vehicle panel 32 than the transmission assembly 26.

A mounting bracket 34 is rigidly attached to the vehicle panel 32, asshown in FIG. 2. The mounting bracket 34 is shown attached to the dashwall panel 20 in FIG. 1, but can also be rigidly attached to the floorpanel 18. As shown in FIGS. 3-6, the mounting bracket 34 has an outersurface 36 facing the passenger compartment 11 and an inner surface 38facing the vehicle panel 32. A plurality of fastener apertures 40 extendfrom the outer surface 36 to the inner surface 38 of the mountingbracket 34 to receive fasteners 42 to rigidly attach the mountingbracket 34 to the vehicle panel 32, as shown in FIG. 2. A plurality ofprojection apertures 44 extend from the outer surface 36 to the innersurface 38 of the mounting bracket 34. A conduit opening 46 extends fromthe outer surface 36 to the inner surface 38 of the mounting bracket 34.

A sealing grommet 48 includes a sealing portion 50 and a conduit portion52, as shown in FIGS. 3-6. The sealing portion 50 is disposed betweenthe vehicle panel 32 and the mounting bracket 34. An outer surface 54 ofthe sealing portion 50 contacts the inner surface 38 of the mountingbracket 34, and an inner surface 56 of the sealing portion 50 contactsthe vehicle panel 32 to seal the passenger compartment 11 from theengine compartment when the mounting bracket 34 is installed to thevehicle panel 32. A plurality of fastener apertures 57 extend from theouter surface 54 to the inner surface 56 of the sealing grommet 48, asshown in FIG. 3. A plurality of projections 58 extend outwardly from theouter surface 54 of the sealing portion 50 of the sealing grommet 48.Each projection 58 has a flexible stopper 59 disposed proximate theouter surface 54 of the sealing portion 50. The conduit portion 52 issubstantially cylindrical and has an opening 60 at a first end 62 and anopening 64 (FIG. 2) at a second end 66. The conduit portion 52 has ahollow interior, thereby defining a passage extending from the first endopening 60 to the second end opening 64. The sealing portion 50, theconduit portion 52 and the plurality of projections 58 are preferablyunitarily formed as a single member. The sealing grommet 48 is made ofany suitable sealing material.

A damper member 68 has an outer surface 70 and an inner surface 72, asshown in FIGS. 7-10. A plurality of fastener apertures 74 extend fromthe outer surface 70 to the inner surface 72 of the damper member 68. Aplurality of projection apertures 76 extend from the outer surface 70 tothe inner surface 72 of the damper member 68. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8,the damper member 68 is preferably substantially U-shaped, although thedamper member can have any suitable shape. A first leg 78 of the dampermember 68 is connected to a second leg 80 by a bridge portion 82. Thefirst leg 78, the second leg 80 and the bridge portion 82 define aconduit opening 84 in the damper member 68. The damper member 68 ispreferably unitarily formed as a single member and can be made of anysuitable material.

An assembled shifter cable assembly 12 is shown FIGS. 11-15. The outersurface 54 of the sealing portion 50 of the sealing grommet 48 isdisposed adjacent the inner surface 38 of the mounting bracket 34. Theprojections 58 of the sealing grommet 48 are received by the mountingbracket projection apertures 44. The projections 58 are pulled throughthe mounting bracket projection apertures 44 such that the conduitportion 52 is received by the conduit opening 46 in the mounting bracket34. The flexible stoppers 59 are compressed by the mounting bracketprojection apertures 44 as the flexible stoppers 59 pass therethrough.The flexible stoppers 59 expand to their original shape after passingthrough the mounting bracket projection apertures 44. The flexiblestoppers 59 have a diameter that is larger than that of the mountingbracket projection apertures 44 to properly seat the sealing grommet 48to the mounting bracket 34 and to prevent the projections 58 frompassing back through the mounting bracket projection apertures 44 todisengage the sealing grommet 48 from the mounting bracket 34.

The inner surface 72 of the damper member 68 is disposed adjacent to theouter surface 36 of the mounting bracket 34. The damper memberprojection apertures 76 receive the sealing grommet projections 58. Asshown in FIG. 15, some of the sealing grommet projections 58 can bereceived by the damper member 68, and some of the sealing grommetprojections 58 are not received by the damper member 68. The shape ofthe damper member 68 substantially corresponds to a shape of themounting bracket 34, as shown in FIGS. 11-15. A perimeter of the dampermember conduit opening 84 is preferably aligned with a perimeter of themounting bracket conduit opening 46, as shown in FIGS. 11, 12 and 15.The damper member conduit opening 84 receives the conduit portion 52 ofthe sealing grommet 48. The damper member 68 can be rigidly attached tothe mounting bracket 34 in any suitable manner, such as by welding.

The fasteners 42 are inserted through the aligned damper member fastenerapertures 74, the mounting bracket fastener apertures 40 and the sealinggrommet fastener apertures 57 to rigidly attach the shifter cableassembly 12 to the vehicle panel 32, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 15.Tightening the fasteners 42 sandwiches the sealing grommet 48 betweenthe mounting bracket 34 and the vehicle panel 32, thereby sealing thevehicle panel 32.

The mounting bracket fastener apertures 40 are aligned with the dampermember fastener apertures 74. The shifter cable 28 has a first end 25connected to the shift member 24 and a second end 27 connected to thetransmission assembly 26. The shifter cable 28 is passed through theconduit portion 52 of the sealing grommet 48 to pass the shifter cable28 through the vehicle panel 32. An outer sheath of the shifter cable 28is fixed to the conduit portion 52, and an internal cable moves withinthe outer sheath when the shift member 24 is operated. The damper member68 is configured to reduce application to the mounting bracket 34 ofvibration generated by the transmission assembly 26. By reducing theapplication of vibration generated by the transmission assembly 26 tothe mounting bracket 34, the damper member 68 reduces noise produced bythe vehicle panel 32 and the bracket 34 as combined.

A first cable damper member 61 is disposed on the shifter cable 28proximate the first end 25, as shown in FIG. 2. A second cable dampermember 63 is disposed on the shifter cable 28 proximate the second end27. The first and second cable damper members 61 and 63 reducevibrations from the transmission 26 being applied to the shift selectorassembly 22, thereby reducing the physical vibrations felt at the shiftselector assembly 22 and the center console 14. The damper member 68 isdisposed on the mounting bracket 34 between the first and second cabledamper members 61 and 63, and substantially reduces audible noiseproduced by transmission of vibrations to the vehicle panel 32.

A vibration analysis of the shifter cable assembly 12 in accordance withan exemplary embodiment of the present invention is shown in the graphof FIG. 16. The noise transfer function (in dB) is plotted versusfrequency (in Hz) for the shifter cable assembly 12 (represented by adashed line) and for an undamped mounting bracket (represented by asolid line). The graph of FIG. 16 shows that the application ofvibration applied to the vehicle panel 32 generated by the transmissionassembly 26 over the incident frequency range (approximately 500-700 Hz)is reduced. Accordingly, by reducing the vibration applied to thevehicle panel, the resulting noise is similarly reduced.

A graph of the sound pressure level (in db-A) as observed at a driverseat 13 of the vehicle 10 versus the chain rotation speed (in rpm) isshown in FIG. 17. As shown in the graph, when the transmission assembly26 is operated at a range of approximately 400-500 rpm, the dampermember 68 reduces the noise to less than 45 dB-A. The undamped mountingbracket is indicated by the solid line, and the damped mounting bracketis indicated by the dashed line. As shown, the damped mounting bracketreduced the sound pressure level by approximately 1.5 dB-A.

The graphs of FIGS. 16 and 17 were generated with a damper member 68having a total weight of approximately 200 grams. As shown in FIGS. 7and 8, the first leg 78 is shaped differently from the second leg 80 ofthe damper member 68. A weight of the first leg 78 is different from aweight of the second leg 80 when the first and second legs havedifferent shapes, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. For example, the weight ofthe first leg 78 can be approximately sixty percent of the total weightof the damper member 68 and the weight of the second leg 80 can beapproximately forty percent of the total weight. Any suitable weightdistribution of the damper member 68 can be used. For example, the firstand second legs can be similarly shaped to have substantially equalweights, thereby evenly distributing the weight of the damper member.

General Interpretation of Terms

In understanding the scope of the present invention, the term“comprising” and its derivatives, as used herein, are intended to beopen ended terms that specify the presence of the stated features,elements, components, groups, integers, and/or steps, but do not excludethe presence of other unstated features, elements, components, groups,integers and/or steps. The foregoing also applies to words havingsimilar meanings such as the terms, “including”, “having” and theirderivatives. Also, the terms “part,” “section,” “portion,” “member” or“element” when used in the singular can have the dual meaning of asingle part or a plurality of parts. Also as used herein to describe theabove embodiment(s), the following directional terms “forward”,“rearward”, “above”, “downward”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, “below” and“transverse” as well as any other similar directional terms refer tothose directions of a vehicle.

The terms of degree such as “substantially”, “generally”, “about” and“approximately” as used herein mean a reasonable amount of deviation ofthe modified term such that the end result is not significantly changed.

While only selected exemplary embodiments have been chosen to illustratethe present invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the artfrom this disclosure that various changes and modifications can be madeherein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined inthe appended claims. For example, the size, shape, location ororientation of the various components can be changed as needed and/ordesired. Components that are shown directly connected or contacting eachother can have intermediate structures disposed between them. Thefunctions of one element can be performed by two, and vice versa. Thestructures and functions of one embodiment can be adopted in anotherembodiment. It is not necessary for all advantages to be present in aparticular embodiment at the same time. Every feature which is uniquefrom the prior art, alone or in combination with other features, alsoshould be considered a separate description of further inventions by theapplicant, including the structural and/or functional concepts embodiedby such feature(s). Thus, the foregoing descriptions of the exemplaryembodiments according to the present invention are provided forillustration only, and not for the purpose of limiting the invention asdefined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A shifter cable assembly of a vehicle,comprising: a vehicle panel selected from a floor panel and a dash wallpanel; a transmission disposed on a first side of the vehicle panel; ashift member disposed on a second side of the vehicle panel opposite thefirst side; a mounting bracket rigidly attached to the vehicle panel; asealing grommet having a sealing portion sandwiched between the mountingbracket and the vehicle panel, and a conduit portion; a shifter cablereceived by the conduit portion of the sealing grommet, with a first endof the shifter cable connected to the transmission, and a second end ofthe shifter cable connected to the shift member; and a damper memberconnected to the mounting bracket, the mounting bracket being positionedbetween the damper member and the vehicle panel, the damper member beingconfigured to reduce application to the mounting bracket of vibrationgenerated by the transmission.
 2. The shifter cable assembly accordingto claim 1, wherein the damper member is substantially U-shaped.
 3. Theshifter cable assembly according to claim 2, wherein a first weight of afirst leg of the damper member is different from a second weight of asecond leg of the damper member.
 4. The shifter cable assembly accordingto claim 2, wherein a first weight of a first leg is approximately sixtypercent of a total weight of the damper member, and a second weight of asecond leg of the damper member is approximately forty percent of thetotal weight.
 5. The shifter cable assembly according to claim 2,wherein a first leg of the damper member is shaped differently from asecond leg of the damper member.
 6. The shifter cable assembly accordingto claim 1, wherein the mounting bracket defines a plurality of firstfastener apertures, the damper member defines a plurality of secondfastener apertures aligned with the first fastener apertures, withfasteners extending through the first and second fastener apertures torigidly attached the mounting bracket to the vehicle panel.
 7. Theshifter cable assembly according to claim 1, wherein the mountingbracket defines a first conduit opening, the damper member defines asecond conduit opening, with a perimeter of the second conduit openingaligned with a perimeter of the first conduit opening on at least threesides, and the conduit portion has a projection extending through thefirst conduit opening.
 8. The shifter cable assembly according to claim1, wherein the sealing grommet has a plurality of attachment projectionsfor attaching the sealing grommet to the mounting bracket, the mountingbracket defines a plurality of first projection apertures, and thedamper member defines a plurality of second projection apertures alignedwith the first projection apertures, with the projections extendingthrough the first and second projection apertures.
 9. The shifter cableassembly according to claim 1, wherein the sealing portion of thesealing grommet is disposed on a first side of the mounting bracket, andthe damper member is disposed on a second side of the mounting bracketthat is opposite the first side.
 10. The shifter cable assemblyaccording to claim 1, wherein the damper member is configured to reduceapplication of vibration in the range of 500-700 Hz generated by thetransmission to the vehicle panel.
 11. The shifter cable assemblyaccording to claim 1, wherein the damper member is configured to reducea noise produced by the vehicle panel in response to the application tothe mounting bracket of vibration generated by the transmission.
 12. Theshifter cable assembly according to claim 1, wherein the damper memberis configured to reduce the noise to less than 45 dB-A when thetransmission is operated at a range of 400-500 RPM, as observed at adriver seat of the vehicle.
 13. The shifter cable assembly according toclaim 1, wherein a shape of the damper member substantially correspondsto a shape of the mounting bracket.
 14. The shifter cable assemblyaccording to claim 1, further comprising: a first cable damper memberdisposed on the shifter cable proximate the first end; and a secondcable damper member disposed on the shifter cable proximate the secondend, with the damper member located between the first cable dampermember and the second cable damper member, the first cable damper memberand the second cable damper member being configured to reduceapplication to the shifter member of vibration generated by thetransmission.
 15. A shifter cable assembly of a vehicle, comprising: avehicle panel selected from a floor panel and a dash wall panel; atransmission disposed on a first side of the vehicle panel; a shiftmember disposed on a second side of the vehicle panel opposite the firstside; a mounting bracket rigidly attached to the vehicle panel, anddefining a first conduit opening; a sealing grommet having a sealingportion sandwiched between the mounting bracket and the vehicle panel,and a conduit portion including a projection extending through the firstconduit opening; a shifter cable received by the conduit portion of thesealing grommet, with a first end of the shifter cable connected to thetransmission, and a second end of the shifter cable connected to theshift member; and a damper member connected to the mounting bracket, thedamper member having a U-shape including a first leg, a second leg, anda bridge portion between the first and second legs, wherein the firstleg, second leg, and bridge portion define a second conduit opening,with a periphery of the second conduit opening aligned with a peripheryof the first conduit opening of the mounting bracket on three sides andthe projection of the conduit portion of the sealing grommet extendingthrough the second conduit opening, the damper member being configuredto reduce application to the mounting bracket of vibration generated bythe transmission.
 16. The shifter cable assembly according to claim 15,wherein a first weight of a first leg of the damper member is differentfrom a second weight of a second leg of the damper member.
 17. Theshifter cable assembly according to claim 15, wherein a shape of thedamper member substantially corresponds to a shape of the mountingbracket.
 18. The shifter cable assembly according to claim 15, wherein afirst leg of the damper member is shaped differently from a second legof the damper member.
 19. The shifter cable assembly according to claim15, wherein the damper member is configured to reduce application ofvibration in the range of 500-700 Hz generated by the transmission tothe vehicle panel.
 20. The shifter cable assembly according to claim 15,wherein the damper member is configured to reduce the noise to less than45 dB-A when the transmission is operated at a range of 400-500 RPM, asobserved at a driver seat of the vehicle.